Race Report: St. Patrick's Day 8k

The Fear has set in. Only a few weeks left until the Big Race, have I put in enough hard work to beat my previous self? Workouts this season have been different than the past; they're more frequent, but (purposefully) slower than last season. The marathon pace runs, which are one of my standard measuring sticks from season to season were faster, but never quite as fast as wanted. Worse yet, a disastrous last attempt made them end up shorter than last season. And there's no time left for another go.... 

Going into a marathon with shaky confidence is a dead man's game (DNF man's game?) so something had to be done. After the upsetting marathon pace run, I decided to give the 8k a try. 

I've run this race the last two years, it's always a fun day with lots of green and lots of costumes (despite being a week away from St. Patty's.) I figured all I needed to do was run faster than last year to prove to myself I'm in better shape. Last year I ran 6:15 pace (31:02, 8k is a hair under 5 miles) and beating that should be no problem at all. After I'd proven that to myself I'd feel better. 

As in past years, I didn't taper and took it more like a workout. On the line, I was shocked to realize I wasn't even nervous! (If I could summon this attitude for every race, we'd really be talking.) The first mile was a little fast, the second a little slow, but I tried not to let it phase me. Last year at that point I was dying, getting passed by people, hating racing. This time I felt fine. Good, even. And I was the one passing people. At four miles, I tried to push it a bit, but I'm not sure how much I actually picked it up. I finished in 30:05; if I had known how close I was to sub 30, would I have pushed more? I think I could have.

So the race served its purpose: I got a good workout and a confidence boost. I really needed the boost now, before tomorrow's half marathon. I didn't want to go into the half marathon with shaky confidence, race poorly, then be even more worried for Boston. But I proved to myself I'm in better shape than last year, so there's no reason not to go for a big PR in the half.... 

And then another one in the full... (one month to go!)

Spectators beware: Fiance had a spectacular showing. On a course that is <5 miles, he saw me 4 times. The parents will be down this weekend to join him in their own final Boston tune-up; can they set a spectating PR? 

Dream big, 

Teal

Science Friday: For the Love of Chocolate, Bite Two

Happy day after Valentine’s.

I’ve crawled out of my chocolate-induced coma to bring you the second annual installment  of Chocolate Is Good For You News.  This study came out last year, too late for Valentine’s but in time for Easter. (Do I need to start having an April edition of CIGFY News to justify my Cadbury egg consumption?) It doesn’t have anything to do with running or exercise, but it’s chocolate, so I couldn’t resist. (As is usually the story with me and chocolate.)

In this study, they asked over a thousand people about their eating and exercise habits, evaluated their BMIs (Body Mass Index, a ratio of height to weight) and mood, and most importantly asked the age-old question, “How many times a week do you consume chocolate?” (More than you’d like to know, Researcher. More than you’d like to know.) As you might expect, they found that people who ate chocolate more frequently consumed more calories overall, including more saturated fat, and had higher rates of depression. But they also found that people who ate chocolate more frequently had lower BMIs. (Emphasis is theirs. Even they were so surprised by this that they had to add italics.) They found no link between chocolate eating and exercising. 

What’s really remarkable about this is the issue of calories. There’s an idea that a calorie is a calorie, meaning that no matter what you eat, if it adds up to more calories, you’ll gain weight. Of course that’s overly simplified. Studies show some calories are better or worse than others: protein has been shown to keep you lean, monunsaturated fat to reduce your risk of heart disease, trans fat to raise your risk. Most people would put chocolate in the bad calorie column; it’s full of sugar and fat. But this study suggests it’s not so bad; that a chocolate calorie isn’t just a (delicious!) calorie. Even though chocolate lovers ate more calories, they were still thinner. The authors cite other studies that have found chocolate helps regulate insulin sensitivity, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels. Maybe these advantages of chocolate offset the sugar and fat. The authors finish by concluding that a randomized clinical trial of chocolate may be needed. Count me in!

Unfortunately, the researchers didn’t ask about the type of chocolate. Dark chocolate gets all the good press and is getting more popular, but considering the ubiquity of milk chocolate products in our supermarkets, I can’t imagine these people were eating only dark chocolate. It would have been interesting if they had included that distinction, especially if it gave some credit to poor old milk chocolate. 

Dream big,

Teal 

Science Friday: Hunger Games

The link between exercise and weight loss is controversial. Lots of studies and personal testimonies (yours truly included) indicate that exercise leads to weight loss, but there are other studies that swear it doesn't. (Some studies just throw everything you thought you knew on its head.) I've talked before about the idea of "fit and fat;" it seems that even people who may not experience weight loss still experience many healthy benefits of exercise. But what's the deal with the lack of weight loss? Of course exercise burns calories; one worry is that people over estimate what they burned and overeat, consuming more than they lost. Also, exercise makes us hungry. (See my current amount of food consumption, which has sky rocketed with marathon mileage.) 

An interesting recent study investigated the link between hormones released before and after an exercise intervention and the amount of food eaten. The hormones studied (CCK, obestatin, GIP, and leptin) help to regulate your eating; CCK and leptin tell you to stop eating, GIP tells you to eat more. (Obestatin's role remains controversial.) Obesity may disrupt these hormones' ability to accurately regulate food intake. For example, some obese people have high levels of leptin but seem resistant to its effects. (Leptin should decrease eating.) Some evidence suggests that exercise can help get these hormones back in check, which should help prevent overeating and improve weight loss.

In this study, both male and female overweight participants underwent a 12 week exercise program. Before and after the program, hormones levels were measured after fasting overnight and then directly after breakfast. Other days, participants were given a milkshake and then treated to a pasta lunch. (Milkshakes and pasta? Count me in!) The amount of pasta eaten and the amount of food consumed for the next 24 hours was assessed. The trick was the milkshake: one day it was filled with malodextrin, a mostly flavorless substance that more than doubled the calories. Another day malodextrin wasn't added. The researchers asked how the milkshake affected the rest of the day's eating. Will the participants' bodies sense the extra calories and eat less after the megacalorie milkshake? Will an exercise program help?

First of all, the participants lost weight in the exercise program. That's an important note because it's more evidence that exercise can lead to weight loss, even though the participants were told to maintain their normal diet throughout. After the exercise intervention, leptin levels were decreased during fasting and remained decreased after a meal. This may seem counterintuitive, but leptin decreasing with exercise may help the body become more responsive to its effects. (Remember, obese people may have too much leptin and be insensitive.) The milkshake and pasta lunch combination didn't change after the exercise program. Both before and after the exercise program, the participants ate less pasta after the megacalorie milkshake than after a normal milkshake. However, their food intake over the course of the day changed: after the exercise intervention, the mega milkshake led to less food eaten the rest of the day. (Prior to the intervention, the mega milkshake actually led to more food being eaten the rest of the day, see graph below.) This indicates that the exercise program helped to regulate the body's ability to count calories. It's not that exercise makes you eat less (the days with a normal milkshake had increased food intake compared to days before the exercising, compare hatched bars below), but that your body is better able to judge how much you're eating and when you've had all you need.

 Before the exercise program ("All-Baseline," at left) the participants ate more after the mega milkshake (HEP, solid bars) than after the normal milkshake (LEP, hatched bars). After the exercise program ("All-End", at right), they ate less all day following the mega shake.

It's important to note this study looked at participants who were overweight to start with. Previous studies on this subject tested normal weight people, which isn't as relevant to the population of dieters these studies aim to help. The good news for people trying to lose weight with exercise is that exercise may get your body to help out, by teaching it to better regulate eating.

Lastly, the study is an important reminder to know what you're eating. Restaurants (and researchers!) can trick you into consuming way more calories than you may be aware of. This study suggests your body might be able to compensate to some degree, but do yourself and your body a favor and eat fresh and homemade whenever possible!

Dream big, 

Teal

Baby, It's Cold Outside

It’s really freaking cold outside. Like slap you in the face, knock you over, why am I outside? cold.

But yes, I ran yesterday. And I’ll run today. No, it wasn’t the best run ever, thank you for asking. But I’m glad I got out there. And you will too. Need some motivation? Take your pick.

For the scientifically orientated:

The more  miles I log in the cold days of January,
the faster I run my spring marathon.

Yes, it’s an n of one. Yes, I’m specifically choosing to ignore other factors that may have influenced my marathon times. But there’s a graph, and it looks nice, doesn’t it? I got out the door, so can you.

For the visual learners:

For the Resolutioners:

As per the NY Times, if you can keep your resolution through the end of January (1/3 of people don’t!), you have a good chance of keeping it. This is the hardest month, stick with it!

For the competitive types:

A reality check that might help you get out the door any day: 

And relevance to today’s post: “Someone who is colder than you is running right now.” I really shouldn’t be complaining, because I live in DC, and anyone north or west of me can tell me I’m a wimp and to get over it. (Although this wimp used to live and run in Boston, where she swore 30-degree weather was warm enough for shorts. She doesn't think that anymore.) No matter where you are, there are probably people dealing with worse. If you follow runners on Twitter, you get a good sense that everyone else is braving the elements, and coming back to Instagram photos of themselves with icicle beards.

For the marathoners:

Days until LA: 53

Days until Boston: 81

Days until London: 87

Don’t waste them!

For the appearance driven:

I can’t give you a countdown until beach season officially starts, but I do know that stores have spring lines and bikinis out. Seriously.

For the Southern Hemisphere types:

Screw you. Let’s talk again in July.

Bundle up and get after it! (Safely of course, I’m not talking about running in ice storms here.)

Dream big and stay warm,

Teal

Happy New Season

More than two weeks into the New Year, how are the resolutions coming? I’m enjoying the extra people out running; it’s always a pleasant surprise I’m not the only crazy person running around in the cold. Hopefully the unseasonably warm weather here in D.C. has kept some people on track. I’d really love to see the Resolutioners still out in February, when it’s really miserable.

I’ll be honest—I don’t make New Year’s resolutions very often. What I do make often and repeatedly are New Season resolutions; when I start getting back into training, I’m optimistic and eager. This will be the season I strength-train/increase my mileage/eat better/sleep more! The success rates of these missions are modest; I have cranked up the mileage and gotten better about eating and sleeping right. But sorry, strength training, you’ve yet to make the cut.

I do appreciate the starting over. Last season was a bit of a mess. I was feeling great in August, getting in the rhythm of workouts with the team, doing strength stuff, looking forward to lots of fall races. But then in September, things fell apart. I was exhausted all the time, couldn’t hit paces in workouts or easy runs, and ran one of my most disappointing races to date. (Ok, Chicago 2010 was worse.) Afterwards, I didn’t really know what to do. I took some days off, moped around a bit, and finally realized I might have iron issues. But after that, I couldn’t get back in the groove, strength workouts slipped away again (they are elusive little buggers!), and my mileage never got back to where I wanted it. More often then I'd like, I abandoned my good diet and sleeping habits. October through December is a bit of a blur of more disappointing races. Honestly, looking back, I’d say I wasn’t giving my all. I was going through the motions, but it wasn’t getting me where I wanted to be. I was in a rut, and I couldn't get out.

So ever since the season wrapped up, I’ve been looking forward to hitting reset. New year, fresh slate, and back to the marathon—my true running love. There’s something satisfying about marathon training--being constantly a little hungry, a little exhausted, and yet completely fulfilled, knowing you're cranking out the miles and hitting the workouts. Now Boston is circled on the calendar, and Coach and I have come up with a plan to get me there, full of all the workouts I love and the ones I love to hate. I’ve got my diet back in check, I’m trying to sleep more, and once again, I’m attempting to sneak that strength training back in. (C’mon, I’ve got to get some wedding arms!) With it all planned out in front of me, it doesn’t look daunting, but like there’s a clear way to get to where I want to be. Just follow the steps. All the bad races and exhaustion are so last season—we’re starting over, with high hopes.

P.S. Happy late birthday to the blog! It’s been over a year, can you believe it?

Brother brought up a good question about race pace workouts. I talk about my favorite (although daunting) marathon workout here. If you ever have any questions, feel free to leave a comment below, or email me at teal@milestothetrials.com. 

Dream big,

Teal

Lauren

This past weekend was the National Club XC Championships, a race our team has looked forward to all season. Instead of the celebration we had planned, we suffered the most significant loss. On Saturday, December 8th, while walking across the street, our teammate Lauren Woodall Roady was hit by a car and killed. She was just 27 years old and recently married.

When we gathered after hearing the news, our team was in shock. How could this happen to someone so young, so full of promise, so kind, so careful? It didn’t seem real. It cannot be rationalized.

We stayed up that night sharing all the reasons we love Lauren. There were a lot of reasons, but no one was keen to sleep. Much was said about how driven she was. Since joining our team last spring, she has annihilated all of her PRs (she was going to crush her marathon PR in January) due to her incredible work ethic. She was the most disciplined runner I've ever known. During workouts, she always set the pace a little too fast, mostly because she didn’t know her own talent and didn’t realize the paces she was running with ease were faster than the rest of us had planned on. On Saturday, in her last race, she gave her absolute all, collapsing at the line. She was an inspiration.

Off the track, she was always positive, warm, and filled with endless energy. Besides having a full schedule as a lawyer, high mileage runner, and gym rat, she found time to make delicious homemade treats: cookies, muffins, strawberry jam. (“Strawberry jam is easy to make! You just start by picking 30 pounds of fresh strawberries...”) She had motherly qualities: an eagerness to help, a kind heart, and a knack for being prepared for anything. When someone mentioned being hungry before Saturday’s race, she whipped out a loaf of bread, a packet of peanut butter, a jar of jam, and a knife from her race day bag. She was a wonderful teammate. 

The next day, our team somberly took the bus back to DC. I wouldn't wish a ten hour bus ride on anyone grieving, but I was glad to be with my teammates who knew Lauren and understood what a loss this was. 

Despite the many discussions and tributes to her life, I am still in shock and cannot believe this is real. When I think of those most affected, her parents, her new husband, I am inconsolable. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers. For my own part, I feel blessed and thankful I was able to know her and run with her for those few months. She will live on in all our hearts, and remain an inspiration to us always.

Our team after Saturday's race. Lauren is furthest left.

Lauren, we love you and miss you. You will forever be our teammate and our inspiration.

Dream as big as Lauren did,

Teal

2:43

It’s official. USATF set the time standard for the 2016 Olympic Marathon Trials. The time I’ve openly declared I would beat so that I can run in those trials. The time I’ve been wondering about since realizing I wouldn’t make it to the last Trials. The time I promised I’d get, without knowing what it was.

There are two types of standards, the A and B. The A standard is faster and gets you an all expenses paid trip to the Trials. You are invited to run if you meet the B standard, but to get to the Olympics, you have to run the A at some point. (Likely in the Trials, because you’ll also have to come in the top 3 against the A qualifiers.) In 2008, the B standard for women was a 2:47 (the A was 2:39.) For 2012, that dropped to a 2:46 (with the A still a 2:39). Okay, that seems fair. More and more people are qualifying, let’s raise the bar slightly. However, on the men’s side, they abolished the B standard entirely, and in 2012, they only invited men with a faster, A standard time.

My fear for 2016 was that the B standard would be dropped, just like it had for the men. There was no telling what they would do, but all I could do was wait and see. I had told everyone who would listen I’d go after it, no matter what the standard was. How difficult that would be lay in the hands of USATF.

I had no clue when they would decide. Completely unexpectedly, my teammate B broke the news at practice last week that the decision had been made. 2:43. I breathed a massive sigh of relief. It could be worse! It could be so much worse. My teammates didn’t share my enthusiasm. D did some quick math and figured out that was a 6:13 pace. Yea, okay, that’s pretty freaking fast. Still, I was almost giddy. It could have been only the A standard (now a 2:37, aka 5:59 pace.) And I’ll take any extra six minutes I can get. (In other news, they gave the men back their B standard.)

Obviously, I realize cutting ten minutes off my time won’t be a piece of cake. But qualifying for the Trials was never going to be a cakewalk to begin with. Ten minutes to cut is easier than 16 (or whatever other crazy standard they could have come up with.) Best of all, now I can stop worrying about it. And just get after it.

But that’s months/years away. (Although the training for Boston begins in a few short weeks (yippee!), the qualification window doesn’t open until August.) First up for the GRC team (aka future Trials qualifiers) is the National Club Cross Country Championship in Kentucky this weekend. My love affair with running started on the cross country course in high school, and I'm excited to run my first XC race in ten years. We’ve been prepping all season and we’re ready to roll!

Clubs, clubs, clubs!

We're ready for the Club(s) in our sharp new clothes and sweet shoes.
Look out Kentucky.

(... And later: Trials, trials, trials!)

Dream big (like 2:43 big),

Teal